


it's not time yet

by snstnlflng9 (svntn)



Series: dates are just numbers, emotions are just feelings [1]
Category: SF9 (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Non-Famous, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Childhood Friends, Gen, No Romance, if you can truly say that, just fluff and some angst, minimal swearing, this is very snapshot and intended to be a foundation to the actual story ohoho
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-15
Updated: 2018-04-15
Packaged: 2019-04-23 03:36:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14323707
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/svntn/pseuds/snstnlflng9
Summary: At the age of thirteen, you and your soulmate would receive identical tattoos on your wrist with the date the pair will meet as well as a designated color. This date, though typically supposed to be when you first meet your soulmate, has rarely come from the past, further complicating the chances of meeting one's soulmate.





	it's not time yet

**Author's Note:**

> Hello!!  
> I don't have anything to mention this time??? Taeyeon and JIhyun are briefly mentioned and meant to be hecka background characters so I'm sorry if I betrayed your trust.
> 
> Spell checked like other. Soft proofed by Word and Grammarly because neither is perfect gdi : ) Excuse any mistakes or yell at me for them ( point them out while you're at it so I can fix them, thanks!! )
> 
> Enjoy!

Giggles echoed off the wall as a pair of 7 and 9 years old hid under the covers of a plush duvet. A dull glow emitting from underneath the material. In one of the boy’s hands sat a Gameboy, sound mute but the sound of motors and turtle shells being shot out at other drivers could still be heard. Close to the end of the last lap, Taeyang got knocked out by thunder and a turtle shell. Before their eyes, all the other drivers had surpassed him and 8th place popped in the corner.

“Ah! So close too!” Youngkyun whined loudly, the flashlight they had moved from his body thrashing around.

“You’re too loud!” Taeyang shushed as gently shoved Youngkyun’s shoulder. The latter gave a pointed glare at his friend before he stole the gaming device. A noise of annoyance followed the action.

“You could have asked.”

“You would have said no.” Youngkyun stuck his tongue out before turning his attention back to the screen. His fingers danced around the controls to start a new game, quickly selecting Toad because his cart was blue, and that color was pretty cool. Taeyang rolled his eyes and flopped onto his stomach, chin resting on his friend’s thigh. It was a normal occurrence of Youngkyun claiming Taeyang’s stuff as his own, so he wasn’t fazed by it anymore. Besides, he was tired, and his eyes were already drooping with sleep.

“Hey, Tae?” Asked for male hummed out for the other boy to talk, “You know that soulmate crap?”

“That’s a bad word,” Taeyang mumbled as he pulled his arms up to rest them on Youngkyun’s thigh but still under his own chin. It was Youngkyun’s turn to roll his eyes.

“What do you think about that?”

“It’s cool.” Taeyang’s smile reached his eyes and Youngkyun hated when that happened, “I want to be just like Ma and Pa.”

“Gross, Tae.” Latter pinched the thigh he was resting on. A yelp came from the action as well as a swat to his hand. When he returned to the game, the screen showed the end results with Toad sitting in the last position. His friend having distracted him at a critical time. Resigning from multiple defeats, the younger turned off the game and set it to the side.

“What about you?” The other boy shrugged his shoulders, “Hey! That isn’t fair. You have to answer too.” Taeyang complained, quickly sitting up and crossing his arm. A laugh emitted from Youngkyun before he pushed the other over, both bodies softly collapsing onto the mattress. Another chorus of giggles exploded from them before they settled into a moment of silence.

“I think it’s cool too.” Youngkyun’s smile brighter than the flashlight they had abandoned. His body was jostled by a small shove. Most likely from repeating the latter’s answer and not providing enough of one for the elder’s liking. He didn’t mind. Both pairs of eyes settled onto viewing the ceiling. A soft hum coming from the fan hovering above them. Sleep had begun to slowly seep into Youngkyun’s blood. His limb went lax, one arm fell onto Taeyang’s stomach, which caused a groan, as his eyelids fluttered shut.

“Good night, I guess,” Taeyang mumbled, shoving Youngkyun’s arm off him then pulling the blanket past his shoulders. However, before he could get truly comfortable, the younger’s body rolled into his. He couldn’t even protest due to the body curling up into his side. Normally he would just shove him away like usual but for tonight, Taeyang let it be. Though, Youngkyun was truly the worst sleeping buddy Taeyang had ever had.

&&&

Knocking was for strangers and Taeyang certainly wasn’t one. Not that the door being propped open gave a need for knocking to begin with. He was eleven and free-spirited at this point there was no stopping him. When the boy shuffled into the living area there were boxes stacked upon boxes. Each with marker written somewhere on its surface with a location in bold lettering, sometimes a name went with it. An uncomfortable feeling settled in his gut. It had been a month since he learned about the Kim’s moving due to their mother finding a better job. Taeyang made sure to spend as much time as possible with the family, one member in particular before he never got to see him again. Never was a strong word but he knew that seeing them often was unlikely.

“Ah, Taeyang!” The boy looked toward the kitchen. His eyes falling upon Jihyun, Youngkyun and Youngmi’s mother. The elder was packing dinnerware into a box with Youngmi doing the same but with eating utensils. Youngmi had a few years on Youngkyun and Taeyang but she was just like her brother in a few ways. If he were, to be honest, he wasn’t going to miss having a second Youngmi around. That wasn’t to say he didn’t like her.

“Are you looking for your mother? She left to go get more drinks for us.”

“I think he’s looking for Kyunie,” Youngmi suggested as she bound a group of chopsticks together. A blush dusted across Taeyang’s cheeks at his obviousness but more so at the smug look she gave him. “He’s upstairs finishing.” The boy nodded quickly before bolting up the adjacent stairs. No way in hell did he want to stay down there longer than necessary. Especially if it meant not getting teased. The floorboards creaked slightly with each step he took. With each step closer, he could hear the radio from his friend’s room get louder. Chances were the younger wouldn’t hear him come in, but he wanted to take precautions. Sucking in a breath, Taeyang slowly opened the door and carefully slipped into the room, closing the door once he made it.

Youngkyun may have said he was packing but in fact, he was laying on the same bed Taeyang has come to know very well in the last seven years. Clothes, miscellaneous toys, and knickknacks, as well as books, were scattered around the floor. Clearly, he was doing what he was supposed to.

Crawling over to hide under the youngers desk, he hugged his legs close. The music transitioned from the moody soul gripping sound to what he would have least expected to hear. Sounds akin to sirens, heavy beats and a low toned female voice flowed through the room.

“I know what you are! What you are, baby,” Youngkyun began to screech as much as his pubescent voice could honestly reach. Taeyang would be lying if he said he wasn’t impressed by how high the younger could reach. The shorter leaped off his bed to shake his hips if you could say that considering how stiff they were, to the female anthem. He was mentally dying from laughter while trying to smother his giggles into his palms.

“Womanizer, woman-womanizer. You’re a womanizer oh, womanizer, oh. You’re a womanizer, baby!” Youngkyun’s foot blew its way through a pile of stacked clothes that Taeyang guesses were ready to be boxed up. A greater mess to take care of. As the beats continued to get stronger, the younger danced around, posed randomly while pretending he was holding a microphone. The scene before Taeyang was getting out of hand and his little-teenaged tolerance couldn’t hold back as he blew his cover, laughing hysterically as Youngkyun shook his butt once again.

A scream of terror emitted from the latter as he spun around, instantly spotting the intruder under his desk. At the sight of his friend laughing, Youngkyun couldn’t bring himself move, much less form an explanation as to why he was dancing to Britney Spears of all things. His face grew into the color of a tomato. It was official, his life was over. Thank god, he was moving.

“Oh my god.” Taeyang exhaled as he brought a hand up to wipe away his tears. “I hope I never forget that.”

“Shut up!” A toy whizzed past Taeyang’s head, but thankfully missed and landed with a thud against the leg of the desk. “What are you doing here?” The younger tugged at the strings of his hoodie, drawing them downwards to the point where his face because of a single dark hole and fabric. The elder shuffled over and poked a finger through the hole which earned him a soft ‘ow.’

“Ma is helping so I wanted to help too.” The answer was too pure for the world and Youngkyun knew it. He weakly ( read: shyly ) kicked the elder in the shin as a reaction. He loved when the elder responded the way he did. It was natural for him to be so caring. Part of him wondered if there was anyone else in the world who was like Taeyang. Or if there was anyone else in the world who could fluster him as much as the other.

“It looks like you need the help too.” A smirk grew on the elder’s face. Help? Youngkyun withdrew from his shell and gave Taeyang a queer look. Upon seeing it, the elder reenacted the younger’s action of kicking his clothes over, over exaggerating a booty shake right after.

Nevermind, he hated Taeyang.

 

It was the last box. The last box filled with Kim possessions. Youngkyun had been given the privilege, if it could be called that, of placing the box into the bed of the truck with a soft thud. He dusted his hands together in a job well done and grinned happily over at his mother who only chuckled. Taeyang laughed as well. The shorter made his way over to the elder, extending his arms out for a hug. A goodbye hug. A hug that Taeyang wasn’t ready to have. He loved hugs and frankly, it was the first hug he didn’t want.

Like the super bro thing to do, Taeyang put Youngkyun’s down then extended a hand out to him. The younger’s brow quirked up in, “A handshake?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s stupid.”

“Youngkyun!” Jihyun reprimanded from off to the side. She had been conversing with Taeyang’s mother, exchanging the new address and a plan to meet up for a housewarming before her son used choice words. Despite the stern tone of voice, her expression was of worry. Did she sense the odd atmosphere happening between the two or was she just worried her youngest was traveling to the dark side? He couldn’t tell.

    “Sorry, mom.” Her son responded before turning his attention back to his best friend. His hand was still stretched out, kind of aching from neglect. There was no way he was taking a handshake over a hug. So, he moved forward to collect the latter into a hug, but he sensed that, shifting away from him. Youngkyun huffed in annoyance then tried repeatedly but the elder kept avoiding his advances. What the heck??

“Tae, why won’t you hug me?” A pout formed on his lips, his arms fell to his side in defeat. He was truly hurt. The elder shifted on his feet, head down with his hands fidgeting with the hem of his jumper.

“Cause.”

“Cause why?” There was a moment of silence before a rushed mumble came from the shifty boy. Youngkyun’s ears couldn’t quite reach to understand what the jumble of words was. His brows furrowed together even more, if they could at this point in his frustration.

“What?” Another mumble jumble of squished words. His patience was running thin.

“Taeyang hyung!” A small stomp came from the younger, at once shaking up his friend across from him, as well as the pair of mothers and Youngmi. However, much to anyone’s pleasure, the three females stayed off to the side. There was a tiny part of Taeyang that wished his mother would swoop in and save him, take him home and give him a big mug of milk and a biscuit to ease his depression. That didn’t and probably wasn’t going to happen with his current attitude.

“I don’t want to give you a hug because if I do, that means you’re really leaving and I don’t want to miss you! I want you to stay here and keep being my best friend!” The elder cried out, his head kept down but the grip on his jumper tightening. Taeyang’s voice was unstable, a clear sign he was trying to hold back either on sobbing or tears or both. Jihyun’s heart hurt at the sight.

“I don’t want to lose you.” Was the last thing Taeyang said to his best friend before the latter slammed into him, a messy hug as they fell into the grass. At the impact, all the unshed tears broke, and not from Taeyang. Some time from the stomp to Taeyang’s confession, Youngkyun had been silently crying. Something that was common with the boy as he was the biggest crybaby ( don't let Taeyang know but he had been bawling his eyes out the whole night prior and his sister teased him about it the whole morning ).

“Who said you would lose me, Dumbo?” Youngkyun sobbed, very unattractively if one might add, as he buried his face against the elder’s shoulder. Taeyang tried to respond but he could only emit a choked noise through his crying ( months later both would deny such a scene and claim their mothers were making it up ). Each other’s grasp grew on the other but sadly, it didn’t last long as Jihyun placed a gentle hand on both of their heads. The boys jerked at the sudden touch but nonetheless cried harder.

“Hey, you two,” Jihyun softly pet their hair, voice soothing. “You’ll see each other soon. No one is losing anyone, okay? Taeyang-ah, Youngkyun-ah, you two will always have each other.” Taeyang limply nodded. Youngkyun made a gross, sniffling sound. A small chuckle came from the Kim mother. She pulled the two up into a sitting position but kept holding their hands as she smiled gently.

“We’ll call lots, won’t we Hyunie?” Said boy nodded his head furiously as he rubbed away the tears on his cheeks. Taeyang outstretched his hand to help with the missed tears. “And Taeyang, you’ll keep your room clean so Hyunie can come to visit, right?”

“Of course!” Taeyang squeaked quickly. Mrs. Yoo and Youngmi’s amused chuckles could be heard in the background at the boy’s eagerness.

“Then there’s no need to be sad, kiddos. This is only a little bump in the road.” Mrs. Kim leaned over to place a single kiss on each boy’s forehead. A blush spread across Youngkyun’s cheeks at the embarrassing gesture. ‘MOoOOom’ came out as a whine. To quickly avoid any more embarrassment, Youngkyun turned to Taeyang and threw his arms around the elder’s shoulders. A wide grin spread across his face as he finally got his hug ( not counting the attack from before ). The latter’s expression mirrored his, arms snaking around to give an even tighter hug. Childish whispers were exchanged, a few promises come out of the exchange. Childish promises with lots of innocent hope.

&&&

Taeyang’s 13th birthday was a gay occasion much to his surprise. Secondary school had felt odd to him, he couldn’t put his finger on it really, but his internal feelings were no feat as he continued to make new friends, a lot of friends to his disbelief. Most of them were all boys his age, minus one or two that were a little bit older than him and a grade above. There were a few girls in his circle too. One of which, Jiho, was considered his best friend ( Subin would beg to differ and demand a fight but one glare from the said girl would shut him up and sit him back down ).

By the age of 13, a child would receive their soulmate marking. The marking was that of a tattoo, usually stark black and permanent as heck. Taeyang was beyond nervous to receive his, his date of meeting his soulmate. The three elder boys he was friends with had shared with him the stories of their markings. It was nothing extravagant, you feel a small tickling as the black ink speckled to form the date, plus they were young, they didn’t care about finding their soulmates at once. Their marks were also nothing close to present time. Taeyang was a little frustrated with their laid-back attitude. He was super anxious to discover his soulmate and hoped that he didn’t have to wait years upon years to meet them.

With his opposing hand non-abrasively scratching at his dominant arm’s wrist, he looked around for Jiho. The girl was likely bossing around the football players, if not nagging Subin. He wondered if they were going to become soulmates. It wouldn’t surprise him once they both got theirs that their date would be when Jiho punched Subin for calling her only a pretty face. (It had been a momentous event where Taeyang cried while reprimanding Subin for being dumb and no one would let him live down the little fit.)

“Taeyang?” Taeyeon, Taeyang’s mother called out to him. The boy stopped in his tracks, quickly whipping around to find where his mother had been with the house phone pressed up again her ear. The woman shifted the phone to rest on her shoulder, canceling out the chances of her being heard by the caller.

“Sweetie, Youngkyun isn’t going to be able to make it.” A look of sympathy came over the woman. Taeyang’s spirit had sunk upon the news. He and Youngkyun had talked over the phone back and forth to express their excitement for weeks. Youngkyun wanted to be there to help Taeyang through the shock of his marking. Taeyang wanted Youngkyun to be his support (no offense to Jiho or Subin.) It was a special occasion and as Taeyang’s no. 1 best friend, Youngkyun had to share the moment with him just like he would when the younger turned 13.

A frown settled on the boy’s face. His eyes began to burn from the rush of disappointment. There was probably a good reason for the canceling, like Busan being really far away and stuff. It still hurt though. Taeyeon glanced at her son, a silent question of ‘are you okay’ in her eyes. Her son numbly nodded before excusing himself to find Subin and/or Jiho.

 

“You’re an idiot.”

“I know you are but what am I?”

“An idiot?!” Taeyang rolled his eyes as he shoved as much kimchi pancake into his mouth as he could. The party had ended a few hours ago but there was still a private party for Taeyang. It was around 9 at night when his two friends returned in PJs, pillows tucked under their arms and knapsacks with clothes for the morning on their backs.

Taeyang found solace in leftovers from his birthday lunch. They even had a large plate of leftover crispy chicken that was perched on the living table. It was blissful. Minus Subin picking a fight but that was normal. Subin stuck his tongue out at the girl, earning himself a glare and too close for comfort jab of chopsticks at his face. Jiho’s mother cleared her throat from in the distance. It seemed to calm the girl down, but the glare was still set.

"It’s almost tiiime,” Jiho sang, turning her body toward the birthday boy. An excited smile set on her lips as she reached out to shake Taeyang’s arm. “Are you excited?”

At the mentioning of it, Taeyang’s spirit fell again. He had forgotten that Youngkyun wasn’t coming and thus he forgot about his marking ceremony. He was supposed to be sleeping at the time of, but his mother allowed him to stay up for a movie night. Jiho and Subin were the only ones who were invited to it. And Youngkyun, he guesses. Taeyang shrugged before taking another piece of pancake into his mouth.

“What’s wrong? You didn’t shut up about it for the last week!” Subin whined with a mouth of chicken. Jiho shot him a disgusted look while she scooted away from the boy.

“Yeah, what’s up Tae?” Jiho backed up Subin. A little politer and caring than the other. Taeyang emitted a sigh of defeat. They were going to be stuck together all night and even if he did ignore them during the movie (he picked UP, mainly because Youngkyun said he loved the talking dog and Taeyang just like the idea of a house flying by balloons) they would keep poking until he spoke. And he would crack eventually.

“Youngkyun couldn’t come,” Taeyang mumbled into a piece of chicken, popping the bite into his mouth after. When he glanced at the two, Jiho looked apologetic while Subin looked confused.

“Who?” He blindly asked. Jiho jabbed him in the side.

“Kim Youngkyun, you idiot.” She spat out, “He always called you Stupin and you always gave him a stink eye.” A moment passed as he processed the so-called information.

“Oh, the kid who moved away?” Ding, ding! A smacking sound came, most likely from Jiho facepalming. “His loss is our gain. More chicken and blankets for us then.” This time a loud cry sounded. Jiho had punched the boy in the arm. He gingerly rubbed the spot while glaring at the girl. Taeyang picked up his pillow and blankets, deciding it was better to intervene and sit between them. If anything, he could stop an oncoming fight, or like, get injured in the process but they would stop if that happened too.

Taeyang reached for the remote, staring ahead at the start menu on the tv, “Can we watch the movie now-?”

A shriek bounced off the walls. Startled, both the males jumped and turned toward the girl who screamed. Not that their attention stayed on her long since she was pointing at Taeyang with wide eyes and gaped mouth. The male’s eyes followed to the hand holding the remote. Or more specifically, his wrist.

The girl had noticed black speckles beginning to form an assortment of numbers. How had he not noticed? The tingling must have been overpowered by Subin’s screeching that pained his ears. Out of shock, he dropped the remote while his free hand went to cradle his opposing wrist. Slowly the numerals 031009 had shown themselves.

“Three, ten…nine?” Taeyang read out, squinting at the black ink as he brought his wrist closer to his face. Was that right? That couldn’t be right, right? Dates weren’t supposed to be in the past, they were supposed to be set in the future. It was 2010 for crying aloud.

“Three?” Jiho squeaked from beside him. She was within his personal space, peering at the numerals. Normally he would have been disturbed by her intrusion, but the shock was too great. “As in, 2003?” She asked next.

“What the heck??” Subin grabbed Taeyang’s wrist and gave it an inspection of his own. With each passing second, Taeyang’s head began to spin faster. What did any of this mean? Did he already meet his soulmate? If so, how he was supposed to find them now? It’s been seven years! He was also 4 years old! He couldn’t coherently remember that far back. His brain hadn’t functionally formed yet… Had it?

“How unlucky.”

“Y-Yeah. I guess?” Taeyang finally spoke. His arm went limp, a new tingly feeling replacing the earlier one. He was numb. A drop landed on his forearm. The boy blinked and another one appeared. Was he…crying? He brought his unmarked arm up to rub at his eyes, the tears unforgiving. Taeyang was tired and frustrated at this point. He was only 13 but suddenly his future seemed done for, at least, a future with a soulmate. Who would have thought someone with the name ‘Sun’ would get screwed over this like?

&&&

“I give up!” Youngkyun glanced up from the workbook he was working in, a mess of limited Korean and full on English words scattered on the pages. The male quirked a brow toward the voice that spoke out, waiting for the other to continue.

“Dude, it’s a Friday night.” Chanhee exasperated, throwing his arms into the air for extra effect, “It’s also your birthday. In fact, we shouldn’t be at home doing homework! We should be at the karaoke or arcade or I don’t know, anywhere but here—doing this!” The raven-haired male moved his chair back to stand, closing his own workbook with a dramatic thud. A sigh escaped from Youngkyun. He should have known better than to have invited the younger over that day.

“We skipped cram school, we should finish this.” Youngkyun tried to reason but it obviously failed by the expression the latter gave. Chanhee’s face scrunched up then he squinted at him, a look that yelled “wtf.” He had tried at least.

“Can we at least stuff our face with burgers?” The younger tried to reason. It was a lot better than going out to busy, social places. As much as Youngkyun liked both places, his favorite being the arcade, he didn’t feel up to being around too many people. Especially not with his birth time ticking closer and closer. People would notice if a boy had unblemished skin then a contrasting mark on him the next moment. It was already bad enough that his own mother and sister skipped out on his ceremony for some girlie nonsense he didn’t care to learn about in detail.

He did, however, whine about his mother missing his official coming of thirteen, but she promised to bring him and Chanhee a whole cake when they got back. He was okay with her missing the ceremony. Not that he wasn’t in the first place because as much as he cared about receiving his soulmate marking, read: he doesn’t, and he never will for as long as he lives. She was ecstatic to know the date and start gossiping to other mom friends. Truly embarrassing.

“I guess--.”

“Yes!” Chanhee’s arms returned to the air. A triumph aura flowered around the kid. His legs about to make a break for their jackets and the front door.

That was until Youngkyun spoke back up and rained on his parade, “We still need to finish our homework.” Spirit came crashing down as quickly as it arose. His shoulders sagged as his expression faltered, a frown settling.

“When did you become a loser?”

“Language, Kang Chanhee.” The male pointed his pencil up at the boy, a stern look being held.

“Spare me your adult-shit.” Youngkyun grinned proudly as the younger plopped back down in his chair. Submitting to the request he scooted back up to the table, opened to his marked page and continued to work on the problem set. A feeling of pride washed over the elder as he watched the scene. It died a moment later when Chanhee chucked his pencil case at him with a ‘hurry up so we can leave.’ He hated Chanhee.

 

“Burgers are on me.” Chanhee declared while pointing at himself proudly. As if Youngkyun didn’t know that his mother slipped the younger money as she and his older sister slipped out of the house. It was a trick that Youngkyun wasn’t going to buy but he did act along to humor Chanhee.

“Whatever,” Youngkyun rolled his eyes.    His eyes flickered across the franchise before settling upon a table in the corner. It was secluded if you count the fact everyone was sitting around the windows and at the small booths along the wall. Youngkyun flung himself onto the cushion and let out a heavy sigh. The boy took in his surroundings, noting the university couples, a group of high schoolers sneaking each other’s food and the loners.

Youngkyun paid extra attention to the couple nearest him, they looked to be university students on a date. Upon further looking he noticed that the lady’s wrist shown a date that was a few months from now. With a quick flick, the male that was sitting opposite of her, sharing a tray of fries, his date appeared to be a few years ago. Were they really a couple? Youngkyun was skeptical at this point. It wasn’t until the male leaned over to kiss the woman that his doubts were answered. Also, gross???

“Two burgers and two fries!” Two trays came into his line of view as well as a body that belonged to the one and only chubby cheeked Chanhee.

“Did you forget how to count?” According to his eyes, there were about four burgers and too many fries that Youngkyun’s heart foresaw a heart attack. The younger of the two shrugged before tearing open a ketchup packet with his teeth. This was followed by a repetitive action for around three more packets.

“Two for you, two for me.” Chanhee smiled, leaning over the table as he did. “Shut up and eat.” Those were the last words said as he thrust a spicy chicken sandwich into the elder’s hands. He simply complied because who would be dumb enough to argue over food?

Chanhee stuffed a few fries into his mouth, mumbling as he asked, “How much longer till?” He liked to consider himself polite so Youngkyun only quirked a brow at the question. It was too broad of a question. “Your ceremony.” Ah. This time Youngkyun shrugged, choosing to stuff food into his mouth instead of answering. Now was certainly not the time to share.

“Dude, your food won’t disappear if you answer one question.” A fry was flicked in his direction, squarely hitting in the eye. What the heck? In retaliation, he flicked a neglected condiment at the younger. A noise of surprise followed as well as the table shaking from Chanhee having bumped into it to avoid the item from touching him.

“I guess I deserved that but come on.” Chanhee exasperated, leaning over the tablemore,  “I know you’re sketch about soulmates and stuff, but as your best friend,” The younger grabbed Youngkyun’s shoulders, “I deserve to know why you give every passing couple the stink eye.” His expression softened a bit, especially since Chanhee didn’t look like he was trying to be a brat. Setting down the burger, Youngkyun resigned ever slightly but his guard was still up.

“Plus, I would like to know in the future why you’re giving me the same eye when I find my soulmate.” And then he ruined it.

“I don’t need a reason to give you the stink eye, dipstick.”

“Hey!” A silence overcame them as more food began to disappear into the endless pits that were their stomach. Before they both knew it, the sun was setting, and the question stayed unanswered.

“So?”

Youngkyun popped a fry into his mouth, “I don’t believe in soulmates,” The elder started while keeping his gaze set on the remaining pile of fries between them. Crumpled up wrappers thrown to the side of the tray, sitting in one of the puddles of ketchup that Chanhee had created but had neglected. “I heard mom once talking to someone on the phone. Their son’s date from like, seven years behind his ceremony?”

The brunette gasped, the fry mid-way to his mouth dropping, “Woah, seriously?”

“Yeah.”

“So, you don’t believe just because of that?” The brunette scoffed, “No offense but that’s dumb. What if she was lying?” No one would honestly come up with a story like that. Past dates weren’t a myth, they were just rare and hardly did those poor souls find their soulmates. It was beyond tragic.

“That’s not the reason though. Mom has been alone for as long as I have been born.” Youngkyun mumbled, “When I was little I could recall mom cry some nights to one of the neighbor ladies about being alone with two kids. Her soulmate not wanting to be with her anymore, not wanting to be with us.”

“That’s shit, you know?” Across the table, Chanhee shrugged. It was expected due to circumstances. “Our textbook says soulmates are supposed to have an eternal romantic love, blah-blah-blah.” Whatever was left of their burgers had gone cold, probably. Youngkyun was ranting too long and Chanhee was trying to be attentive to the best of his abilities. However, the younger had been playing with his fries the whole time.

“Mom still believes in the soulmate system and that he’ll come back but it’s been years, Chanhee. Years!”

The called for dropped the fry he was playing with, his brows furrowed, “So?”

“If they were real, they wouldn’t leave their love behind.” Youngkyun gestured to the table where the university couple from before had been sitting. “They weren’t soulmates, but they were in ‘love.’” A look of disgust came over Youngkyun’s face as he thought back to the kiss they shared. His young eyes were going to be scarred for years.

“The guy had already met his mate! He wouldn’t have left them if this stupid system was real.” Youngkyun scoffed then reached out for a clump of fries to stuff into his mouth. The boy was frustrated with Chanhee’s lack of empathy. Then again, how could Youngkyun expect Chanhee to be when his parents were textbook standard, devoted as heck soulmates with one kid, nice jobs, and an equally nice house.

There was a small nagging in his head that said Chanhee reminded him of someone from his past. Youngkyun shrugged it off.

There were a few passing moments as they finished consuming the last of their meal. Chanhee having still been eerily quiet the whole time, something unlike him. Something shouted at Youngkyun to apologize for being such a Debbie downer but why should he when Chanhee asked anyway. It was his own fault—“Aren’t friend soulmates a thing?”

“Dude, seriously?!”

 

Chanhee lifted the Nutella filled taiyaki to Youngkyun’s lips as the elder focused intensely on the Mario Kart race. The younger would have normally yelled out strategies but was too tired from the walking and food he consumed so far that day. It was a surprise he was willingly feeding the elder. Though, he was draped haphazardly over the sofa and Youngkyun’s lap. That was another surprise that he wasn’t shoved off the sofa.

“Why do you always pick Toad?” Chanhee chimed, bringing his own dessert to his mouth. Sounds of motors and occasional warning signals from incoming shells emitted from the Wii Remote in his hands. His focus solely being on winning his last Grand Prix race. Once the kart glided across the finish line did the male respond.

“Not sure.” Youngkyun said between mouthfuls of Nutella bread, “His cart is blue and that’s cool.” Was his final comment on the matter before handing the younger the remote, deciding to finish off his bread in victory.

“That’s dumb.” The younger smirked up at his friend. Glancing over at the tv to scroll through the character choices before setting his gaze back to Youngkyun. “Everyone knows that Bowser is the best.” The screen flickered through the selection menus, from characters to cart setup. Chanhee already knew his ideal build combos and it was kind of amazing.

Youngkyun scoffed and raised his hand to smack the younger’s head, “Shut up and play—” A dull thud came within the room, the Wii Remote having dropped from Chanhee’s grasp as his hand came up to grasp the elder’s wrist. Why he did such a thing was beyond him as he stared at the younger. Youngkyun’s face flushed from the sudden action, especially since they never really shared skinship before.

“Uh, Chan?” The other’s eyes scanned over Youngkyun’s wrist intensely before he showed what caught his attention. Unknown to him, Youngkyun’s marking had made its appearance. His eyes went to search for the nearest clock, the time really. Had he completely disregarded when he officially turned 13?

“Dude.” Chanhee shook the limb in his grasp, “Your date! Your fucking date!” The brunette swatted the younger’s hands away, so he could see the numbers. His eyes squinted to read each symbol, 031009. What? It couldn’t be possible that his date was from 2003. Youngkyun rubbed his eyes performing the action a little bit longer than necessary. When he looked back at his wrist the numbers were still there, still the same set numbers, still 031009.

“W-what?” Youngkyun breathed out, his vision shaking a little from frustration.

“I can’t believe I know someone who will never meet their soulmate.” Youngkyun’s hand smacked itself against the younger’s chest. A whine of pain emitted from the action, the younger rubbing the area tendering while pointedly glaring at his abuser.

Sure, he said he doesn’t care about his soulmate marking, in fact, a part of him was okay with this situation. He didn’t have to worry about finding his soulmate because he had already found them. He knew that for a fact, oddly enough. Some of part of him knew he had meet them but in return, which meant he was also someone he argued against the most. He had left his soulmate unknowingly. That appeased the hypocrite in him only slightly. However, his anger had gradually stood its ground.

“See?” Youngkyun leaned back into the sofa cushion, folding his arms over his chest with a frown settling on his lips, “The system is a liar.”

**Author's Note:**

> Note, this is a prequel to the actual story that will occur in another post, so keep an eye out for that in the like,,,series/part thing?? Whatever that thing is called. If you enjoyed this that is, if not that's cool thanks for reading anyway!


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